When tools are used in a manufacturing or service environment, it is important that tools be returned to a storage unit, such as a tool box, after use. Employers typically perform a manual inventory check of the tool box to minimize or eliminate the problem of misplacement or theft of expensive tools. Companies can conduct random audits of employee's toolbox to prevent theft and monitor tool location.
Some industries have high standards for inventory control of tools, for preventing incidents of leaving tools in the workplace environment where they could cause severe damages. For the aerospace industry, it is important to ensure that no tools are accidentally left behind in an aircraft or missile being manufactured, assembled or repaired. The Aerospace Industries Association even establishes a standard called National Aerospace Standard including recommended procedures, personnel management and operations to reduce foreign object damage (FOD) to aerospace products. FOD is defined as any object not structurally part of the aircraft. The most common foreign objects found are nuts, bolts, safety wire, and hand tools. Inventory control over tools is critical to prevent tools from being left in an aircraft.
Some toolboxes includes build-in inventory determination features to track inventory conditions of tools stored in those toolboxes. For example, some toolboxes dispose contact sensors, magnetic sensors or infrared sensors in or next to each tool storage locations, to detect whether a tool is placed in each tool storage location. Based on signals generated by the sensors, the toolboxes are able to determine whether any tools are missing. While this type of inventory check may be useful to some extents, it suffers from various drawbacks. For instance, if a sensor detects that something is occupying a storage location, the toolbox will determine that no tool is missing from that storage location. However, the toolbox does not know whether the right kind of tool is indeed placed back in the toolbox or it is just some objects placed in the storage location to cheat the system. Furthermore, disposing sensors for numerous storage locations in a toolbox is tedious and costly, and the large number of sensors is prone to damages or malfunctions which will produce false negative or positive alarms.
Accordingly, there is a need for an effective inventory control system that that could assist tracking and accounting for usage of tools and whether they are properly put back after usage. There is also a need for an inventory control system which knows exactly what tool is removed or returned to a tool box. Furthermore, as multiple workers may have access to the same tool box, there is another need for an inventory control system that can track a user and his or her usage of tools, to determine responsibilities for any tool loss or misplacement.
This disclosure describes various embodiments of highly automated inventory control systems that utilize unique machine imaging and sensing methodology for identifying an inventory condition in the storage unit. Illustrative features include the ability to process complex image data with efficient utilization of system resources, autonomous image and camera calibrations, identification of characteristics of tools from image data, adaptive timing for capturing inventory images, efficient generation of reference data for checking inventory status, autonomous compensation of image quality, etc.
According to one aspect of this disclosure, systems and methods are proposed for determining an inventory condition of objects stored in a system. An exemplary inventory control system includes a plurality of storage locations for storing objects, wherein each storage location is associated with an object. An image sensing device captures an image of the storage locations, and a radio-frequency identification (RFID) sensor sub-system senses attributes of objects located in the inventory control system. A data storage system stores reference data for each storage location, wherein the reference data includes identification of the object associated with each storage location. A data processor is configured to access image data of the image of the storage locations captured by the image sensing device, access sensing data of attributes of objects located in the inventory control system captured by the RFID sensor sub-system, and determine the inventory condition of each storage location of the captured image based on the image data of the captured image in conjunction with the sensing data of attributes of objects located in the inventory control system.
The inventory control system may further include at least one storage drawer having the plurality of storage locations for storing objects. Alternatively or additionally, the inventory control system may include at least one storage shelf having the plurality of storage locations for storing objects, and a door securing access to the at least one storage shelf.
The RFID sensor sub-system may further be configured to perform radio frequency (RF) triangulation to determine locations of objects located in the inventory control system.
The sensor sub-system may be further configured to sense attributes including at least one of pressure, force, strain, magnetic field, capacitive sense, electric field, proximity, gravitational field strength.
Each storage location may be configured to store a pre-designated object, and the data processor may have access to prestored information identifying a relationship between each pre-designated object and an identifier unique to the pre-designated object. The data processor may then be further configured to determine an inventory condition of objects by sensing the presence of at least one identifier unique to a pre-designated object, and identifying objects based on the relationship between each pre-designated object and identifiers unique to each pre-designated object.
The data processor may be configured to determine the inventory condition of each storage location based on a correlation between data of a region of interest in the captured image and reference data for the region of interest.
The RFID sensor sub-system may be further configured to sense attributes of a storage location of the inventory control system.
The data processor may have access to prestored information identifying a relationship between each storage location and an identifier unique to the storage location. The data processor may then be further configured to determine an inventory condition of objects by sensing the presence of at least one identifier unique to a storage location, and identifying objects based on the relationship between each object and the identifier unique to the storage location associated with the object.
It is understood that embodiments, steps and/or features described herein can be performed, utilized, implemented and/or practiced either individually or in combination with one or more other steps, embodiments and/or features.
Additional advantages and novel features of the present disclosure will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following, or may be learned by practice of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown and described provide an illustration of the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present disclosure. The disclosure is capable of modifications in various obvious respects, all without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive. The advantages of the present disclosure may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.